Town of Grifton
528 Queen Street 
P.O. Box 579
Grifton, NC 28530
(252) 524-5168
 

 

The Grifton Shad Festival’s website was named “Best Website” for festivals and events with a budget of under $50,000 at a conference of North and South Carolina festivals and events held February 2005 in Greenville, South Carolina.

 

“Tell us how you heard about the Shad Festival. E-mail us at edhase@aol.com.

The 38th Annual
Grifton, N.C.
Shad Festival

2008 Date: April 14 - 20

Most events April 19 - 20

2008 Theme: “Pirates of the Contentnea, a Shadabration”.


 


The Shad Festival Parade Saturday morning means excitement and fun for all ages.

New in 2007 were several Latin music and dance events, including Salsa dance music and free instruction.
 


Shad souvenirs at 'Shad Shack' behind Town Common

Fish Fry (Saturday only, 11 a.m.-2.p.m.), prepared by Grifton Volunteer Fire Department.

Visitors view the free Shad Festival Art Show at the Museum lobby of the Civic Center Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Nearly half of the 40 events at the Shad Festival are arts-related


The “Grifton Shad Idol” Talent Show is at the Town Common stage Saturday afternoon. Pre-registration is required. Call Melissa at 252-814-3985 (cell) to select your performance time.

Contentnea Creek bisects Grifton and provides beautiful scenery for camping and boating.
 

Magic Shows Sat. & Sun. afternoons sponsored by Embarq

Art created by Grifton children in Town-sponsored art classes is exhibited at the Shad Festival Children’s Art Show.
 

Pony Rides and Petting Zoo are exciting for kids, in the Children's Area on Pitt Street across from the "Shad Shack" Souvenir/Information Building.
 

Youngsters and teens rate the carnival rides the most exciting event at Grifton’s annual Shad Festival. They open Wednesday evening and run through Saturday
 

Clogging Saturday afternoon is fun to watch. Two shows are scheduled, both by the Green Grass Cloggers of Greenville. See them at the Queen Street Performance Area in front of CB’s Service Station.

 

The Classic Car and Truck Display will be Saturday at the Piggly Wiggly parking lot. Some of them will also be in the Saturday morning Parade.
 

Needlework projects made by Grifton Senior Citizens will be at the Civic Center Craft Room Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
 

The Shad Festival Parade starts at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday with bands, marching units, area queens, floats, Shrine groups, clowns and much more.
 

Colorful and humorous clowns add to Shad Festival parade fun.
 


Free craft activities at the Children’s Craft Tent sponsored by Home Depot of Greenville include building wooden boats and planting flowers.
 

Ayden-Grifton High School band has won the First Place Band trophy at the Shad Festival Parade for several years. The award comes with a $200 check. Click on Parade Info to apply for participation in this year’s Parade.
 

See list of 2007 winners by clicking on the little fish labeled Winners. Shown here are two who set new records in 2007: William Morning 183 ft. 8 inches for males age 15 and older (left) and Kirsten Burt 162 ft. 1 inch for females ages 11-14 (right), both in the Shad Toss.
 

See how far you can throw a real fish at the Shad Toss Saturday and Sunday afternoons. See Schedule for location and hours. Eight trophies are given each day.
 

Face painting by the Greenville Museum of Art is one of the many free arts events at the Shad Festival.
 

Kids of all ages love the balloon sculptures and magic shows Saturday and Sunday afternoons. See Schedule for details.
 

Music, dance and other entertainment events are features at the Shad Festival. See Schedule for details.
 

Casey Litton was named Miss Grifton 2007 during the 2007 Shad Festival Pageant and will represent the town as well as the festival for a year.

 

A new event at the 2007 Shad Festival was dancers in colorful costumes dancing traditional dances from Jalisco and Nuevo Leon sections of Mexico. (Daily Reflector/Jenni Farrow photo)

New exhibits at the Grifton Museum of Area Culture include many animals in the Natural History Room. Tuscarora and prehistoric Indian artifacts, Civil War items, and household and farm equipment from the past are among the other exhibits. The Museum is open year-round from 2-4 p.m. on the first Sunday of each month as well as on Saturday and Sunday afternoons of Shad Festival weekend.
 

 

Craft Show at Shad Festival

 

Copyright 2008 - Town of Grifton - All Rights Reserved